Jared's smile
by bananaman48
Summary: One shot - Mel and Jared after the book finishes. A couple of small conversations about Jared's tendency to smiling.


**Disclaimer: no I do not own the Host**

**A/N: I haven't read the host for a while so please excuse any mistakes, this just popped into my head and I thought I'd type it up, personally I think there isn't enough of Mel and Jared, I mean I like Ian and Wanda, but I prefer these two, I guess I just identify with Mel a lot more than I do with Wanda (the fact that she's human may have be a small part of that)**

**It's fairly short because I'm supposed to be revising :/ I may write something longer for these two when I have time, but meanwhile…**

**Please enjoy and review, it would make my day :)**

I made my way over to my last job of the day; a small, closed off area where we grew crops and found Lily working alone, she looked up when I entered the cave

"Hey Mel"

"Hi Lily…you okay?" I asked trying to sound off hand but I was really enquiring on a deeper level as well

She smiled, appreciating my concern "One day at a time"

I smiled in response and then set to work, not wanting to dwell on painful thoughts for her, it had been nearly two months since Wes had been killed and the wounds were still raw. She was tough though and recovering in her own way.

I honestly didn't know how I would cope if I lost Jared; I mean I had already lost him once, but I always held on strongly to the hope that he and Jamie were still alive. I like to think that I would stay strong for Jamie, but I know that it would change me, the way Jared changed when I was captured. His harsh, stony expression still haunts me, of course I very rarely see it now; my forever smiling Jared is back

"So, you and Jared seem happy" Lily interupted my thoughts

I looked up at her and smiled "Yeah…we really are"

"He seems…very different"

"What do you mean?" I frowned

"Its just that…we were all kind of used to the moody Jared; its kind of strange to see him with a smile on his face all the time"

I laughed once and sighed "Well this is the real Jared, my Jared, who he was before we got…separated" I paused over the word and Lily gave me a smile, I returned it and continued, "he was never without a smile plastered on his face, he even smiled when he slept"

Lily laughed quietly, I reveled at the sound; it had been a long time since I had heard her laugh

"How long were you two together before…?" she trailed off

"Two and a half years"

Her eyebrows shot up "Wow…long term thing then" she chuckled

"Yeah, you could say that…although I was seventeen when we met and he was a little reluctant to start anything at first"

Lily frowned in confusion

"And he was twenty-six" I explained, "he kept insisting that I was too young"

"Oh" lily's expression cleared with understanding, "but he didn't hold out too long?"

I laughed "Until I was eighteen at least"

"How long did you have to wait"

"Three months" I sighed

She laughed at my martyred expression "I bet that was a good birthday"

I smiled and ducked my head, attempting to hide my blush, "It wasn't bad" I mumbled

Lily and I finished our work making conversation occasionally, but comfortable in relative quiet, we talked some more about my life before the caves and about hers.

When we were finished I bid her goodnight and trudged in the direction of mine and Jared's room, I had been working all day and was shattered. So when I slid the door aside and saw an empty mattress I collapsed in the middle of it, spreading out on my back and cracking my joints as I stretched.

After a few minutes I opened my eyes as I heard the door scraping back and saw Jared standing over me, grinning at my sprawled out position

"Any room for me?" he quirked an eyebrow

"Sorry, I don't think so" I smiled wryly

He raised his eyebrows before kneeling down on the mattress and crawling on top of me

"Fine, I'll just have to sleep here then" I could hear the smile in his voice as he collapsed on top of me, resting his head on my chest

His warm body pressed against mine made me smile; I didn't even mind that his weight was making it slightly more difficult for me to breathe. He had clearly just washed and his wet hair was dripping through my top, but right in this moment, I couldn't care less.

After a moment or two I broke the silence

"I was talking with Lily today…about you"

"Oh yeah?" he asked without moving an inch

"Yeah, she was saying how weird it is seeing you with a smile on your face; she had been so used to _serious_ Jared"

He chuckled and lifted his head, scooting up my body and planting his elbows either side of my head so that our noses were just grazing

"I changed a lot after you were gone, I never realised how much time I used to spend smiling; it feels good to do it again"

My mouth stretched into a grin and I reached up to place a sweet kiss on his lips

"I hope you never stop smiling again"

"Me too…I'm never letting you go again Mel, ever" he said seriously

"You won't have a reason to" I assured him

This time he closed the gap between us and placed a firm kiss on my mouth; then it grew as we both felt the sudden need to reassure ourselves of each other's presence. He slipped his tongue into my mouth and I moaned quietly as I returned the favour. His hands slipped into my hair as mine began to wander up his back under his top.

He pulled away and ripped his shirt off over his head in one swift movement, I grabbed the hem of my tank top and began to do the same, I arched my back as he helped me pull it off. Our lips crashed together once more, and we closed any gap between us, I pushed up against him and he willingly rolled over so that I was lying across him. His arms now encircled my waist as mine traced his face and ran through his still wet hair.

Fire was smouldering over every inch of my body; I couldn't seem to get close enough to him fast enough. I broke the kiss and started trailing my mouth along his jaw and down his neck to his collar bone.

I heard him chuckle and lifted my head up to look at him

"What?"

"Tickles"

I laughed at him, which caused him to laugh more

Then I realised, it was my favourite sound; his laugh and my favourite thing to see, the thing I wanted to see every moment for the rest of my life; Jared's smile.


End file.
